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Tue, 31 Mar 2015 19:45:58 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1Today is World Backup Day – Is Your Biz Data Safe?http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20472/today-world-backup-day-biz-data-safe/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20472/today-world-backup-day-biz-data-safe/#commentsTue, 31 Mar 2015 19:45:58 +0000Rieva Lesonskyhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=20472By Neal Bradbury It’s 2015, and although cyber attacks and data breaches are crowding the covers of newspapers and carving out an ever-present name for themselves on news networks across the globe, small business are still leaving themselves vulnerable to attack. What are they waiting for? Today marks the fifth annual World Backup Day, a [...]

It’s 2015, and although cyber attacks and data breaches are crowding the covers of newspapers and carving out an ever-present name for themselves on news networks across the globe, small business are still leaving themselves vulnerable to attack. What are they waiting for?

Today marks the fifth annual World Backup Day, a day set aside to inspire small business owners to take the necessary precautions to protect and backup their critical business data, so it’s important for SMBs to educate themselves on the repercussions of data loss and take steps to stop cyber threats in their tracks.

Encrypt data to keep it safe from prying eyes

Data encryption is a simple step in the fight against cyber crime and one of the most effective tools for keeping private or sensitive information protected. By encoding data both in transit and at rest and requiring an encryption key to view it, businesses are better able to keep important data out of the wrong hands and prevent thieves, cyber criminals, and even the occasional rogue employee from accessing it.

Educate users on best practices for malware protection

Often, small businesses fall victim to cyber attacks simply because they aren’t properly educated on what to watch out for. Additionally, viruses and malware have become an increasingly intimidating threat in recent years, as those behind the attacks have become more sophisticated and well funded.

It is crucial that small business owners—and anyone else who has regular access to sensitive data—be made aware of typical social engineering tactics. They should also know not to download attachments or click links in emails from unusual or unfamiliar senders and to never surrender passwords or other sensitive information over the phone or Internet.

Have a backup plan

Protecting important business data also means having a plan in place for when disaster strikes. Developing a business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR) plan can mean the difference between shutting your doors for good or getting back on your feet and running smoothly after a flood, fire, hurricane, or system failure.

Turn to the cloud

While physical backup solutions are a great first step, they are often no match for natural disasters or theft. By sending data off-site in any fashion, SMBs are ensuring that a backup is available, no matter what happens to on-premise computers. Another advantage to cloud backup is that it can be automated, resulting in consistent, reliable backups, scheduled as often as needed for each individual SMB.

In order to protect themselves from cyber threats, small businesses must educate their users, back up their data to the cloud, encrypt that data, and develop a business continuity and disaster recovery plan. Following these tips, they are well on their way to protecting their business from the Data Loss Gremlins.

But what if your mobile plan is majorly missing the mark? Our latest infographic unpacks reasons your mobile marketing isn’t working and what you can do about it. Get the details below and start designing your rockstar mobile strategy!

One of the easiest ways to increase mobile conversions is to add Social Autofill to your form. It auto-completes your form with info from the user’s social media accounts. The infographic below proves how necessary this feature is to achieving high conversions. @Formstack.

]]>http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20318/mobile-marketing-mistakes/feed/0Are You Investing Enough in Your Business?http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20417/are-you-investing-enough-in-your-business/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20417/are-you-investing-enough-in-your-business/#commentsTue, 31 Mar 2015 13:30:01 +0000Rieva Lesonskyhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=20417By Rieva Lesonsky The Great Recession put lots of small business owners into an extended funk, transforming them into Scrooges afraid to loosen the purse strings. But when it comes to business growth, spending isn’t the same as investing in your business—and a little investment in your company can make a big difference in profits. [...]

The Great Recession put lots of small business owners into an extended funk, transforming them into Scrooges afraid to loosen the purse strings. But when it comes to business growth, spending isn’t the same as investing in your business—and a little investment in your company can make a big difference in profits.

Here are the areas where small businesses will be investing for the coming year—and some things you should think about in each of them.

57 percent of small business owners say they will invest in technology and improving business processes. Consider:

Does your website need updating?

Could mobile technology such as tablets improve sales or productivity?

If you still do things like accounting, invoicing or maintaining loyalty programs and customer records by hand, how much time and money could you save using software instead?

One area you may want to look into is adding ecommerce to your website if you haven’t already done so. Just one-fourth of small business owners in the survey have an ecommerce website. If you do have a retail or similar business, know that the future of retail is increasingly hybrid, with consumers eager to buy online and pick up or return products in stores. Offering at least some of your products online can be a way to get your feet wet in ecommerce while giving customers the flexibility they want.

]]>http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20417/are-you-investing-enough-in-your-business/feed/0Why Airline CEOs Should Have To Run a Small Business Firsthttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/20384/airline-ceos-run-small-business-first/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20384/airline-ceos-run-small-business-first/#commentsMon, 30 Mar 2015 19:01:13 +0000Rieva Lesonskyhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=20384By Eric Groves A recent travel nightmare with American Airlines left me wondering how different the experience would be if the CEO of American Airlines had spent his formative years running a small business. Let me set the stage. My daughter flew home from college for a couple of days and two days before her [...]

A recent travel nightmare with American Airlines left me wondering how different the experience would be if the CEO of American Airlines had spent his formative years running a small business.

Let me set the stage. My daughter flew home from college for a couple of days and two days before her return date a major storm was forecast impacting both the departing and arriving cities of her travel. She was flying on USAir (now American) on a smaller turbo-prop plane and, based on past experience, it was easy to figure out her flight was never going to happen. Silly me, I reached out to American’s customer support to see if I could get her out ahead of the storm into one of the many empty seats shown online.

We all know how this story ends. American Airlines (who apparently doesn’t have access to the weather channel) wasn’t willing to recognize the snowstorm in time to help its customers out. Rather, they waited until 4 hours before the storm hit, declared a snowstorm alert, cancelled the flight and left it’s customer stranded.

While waiting for a “supervisor” on hold, I wondered how this experience might be different if Doug Parker had been tasked with running a small local business for a year before taking over as CEO.

Here’s how things would be different:

Recognize That Customers Matter

Relationships of trust are built through real-life interactions with actual customers. So here’s how a small business owner would get to know their customers. They would:

Sit themselves in the middle seat in the last row on cross country flights

Board last to get the full “on-boarding with bags” experience

Personally try to reschedule a cancelled flight and get to your destination within 24 hours on a non-refundable ticket

Anticipate Customer Needs

Small business owners have to keep their eyes wide open and provide a level of service that’s extraordinary to keep your business. They would have looked at the Weather Channel, figured out this flight was never going to happen, and called me in advance to re-book and get my daughter to her destination in advance of the storm.

Understand Their Inventory

Small business owners understand their available inventory and how to optimize it. They would know the most frequently cancelled flights due to storms, the empty seats the day prior, and would have been prepared.

Be Accessible

I had the opportunity to watch a television story on how Doug Parker at American was focused on becoming more approachable at work. He had torn down a wall in his corner office, removed the security officer protecting the executive suite, and was no longer wearing a tie around the office. But really what does this add up to other than the illusion of approachability? He wasn’t personally helping customers re-book a cancelled flight.

A small business owner wouldn’t just make themselves appear to be accessible to customers. They would already be on the frontlines, personally communicating with customers every day and making sure all their needs are satisfactorily met. Even if they were wearing a tie.

Share your travel horror stories and how you as a small business owner would have handled the situation a little differently. While doubtful it will change things at American, maybe folks at JetBlue and Southwest will take notice!

Eric Groves is the co-founder and CEO of Alignable, the free online network where local businesses and organizations connect and collaborate with others nearby. Eric has been a local marketing expert and enthusiast since 2001, authored The Constant Contact Guide to Email Marketing, and believes that local businesses are always stronger together. Follow them at @Alignable.

We’ve written about ice cream frequently here on TrendCast, perhaps because it’s my favorite dessert. But since most of America agrees with me (collectively we consume about 1.5 billion gallons of ice cream a year and spend about $14 billion doing so), ice cream remains a great entrepreneurial opportunity.

This time the focus is on ice cream sandwiches. But these aren’t the kinds of sandwiches you got from the ice cream truck or grocery store. Think of ice cream sandwiched between two freshly baked cookies. A number of these cookie/ice cream stores are cropping up—and here in Southern California where I live (and where many food trends are born), they’re really going strong.

Diddy Riese has been selling deluxe ice cream sandwiches in Westwood, California, home to UCLA, for more than 30 years. Some new chains are now trying to establish a foothold. In my city of Irvine alone there’s Cookie Connection (a small California chain), Stax Cookie Bar, Cream (an expanding franchise) and likely others I haven’t heard about yet. CoolHaus ice cream creations can be found in California, New York and Texas, sold both in stores and from their ice cream trucks.

But it’s not just about cookies. Think about what else you can make an ice cream sandwich out of. Snow Monster is sandwiching their ice cream between freshly baked large macarons. r you could make ice cream sandwiches out of donuts, waffles, cinnamon rolls or pop tarts. BuzzFeed offers recipes for those creations (and more).

As this shows you, there are endless ways to feed America’s ice cream habit. You can buy a franchise, open a store, sell ice cream from a truck or cart/kiosk, or add it to your restaurant’s menu. The only limit is your imagination.

]]>http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20444/nextgen-ice-cream/feed/0Best Banks, Tax Breaks & the Power of Gossiphttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/20454/best-banks-tax-breaks-power-gossip/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20454/best-banks-tax-breaks-power-gossip/#commentsSat, 28 Mar 2015 17:00:41 +0000Rieva Lesonskyhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=2045413 Things Entrepreneurs Need to Know By Rieva Lesonsky 1) In the Dark about Funding Options Despite all the buzz about alternative financing in general and crowdfunding in particular, a new survey from Manta shows small business owners aren’t very aware of these options. According to the survey, about 67 percent of small business owners [...]

1) In the Dark about Funding Options Despite all the buzz about alternative financing in general and crowdfunding in particular, a new survey from Manta shows small business owners aren’t very aware of these options. According to the survey, about 67 percent of small business owners don’t think they have enough funding options. And 69 percent say the “funding environment hasn’t improved in past 12 months.” Specifically, 23 percent of business owners tapped an alternative lender (meaning, not a bank) to fund a business project, yet a mere 2 percent have used a crowdfunding platform. What’s responsible for the low numbers? Well, 30 percent are unsure of the risks of alternative funding, 20 percent don’t understand the technology associated with these alternative sources and 14 percent simply do not trust them. The Manta survey business owners “overwhelmingly prefer traditional financing options.” Over 70 percent tapped traditional sources for funding (bank loans, savings, credit cards or help from friends and family). Less than 25 percent have gone to an alternative lender. What motivated the entrepreneurs who did use alternative lenders?

38 percent didn’t qualify for traditional bank financing

Almost 20 percent needed small short-term loans

9 percent took advantage of the fast access and convenience of alternative lending

7 percent wanted ongoing access to a credit line

2) Best Banks for Small Business

Sageworks Bank Information took a look at those traditional lenders and found that as small businesses continue to experience strong revenue growth and profitability, more banks see them as attractive targets for loans. The Sageworks data shows about $12 billion more was lent in 2014 than 2013, the first yearly increase since 2010.

The analysts at Sageworks Bank Information looked at two different ways of measuring U.S. financial institutions’ appetite for small business loans: volume and percentage of total loans to determine the top lenders. If you rank banks by total dollars lent to small businesses in 2014, the five top lenders were:

Wells Fargo

Bank of America

JPMorgan Chase

US Bank

Branch Bank & Trust

When looking at the percentage of small business loans to total loans small local banks dominated the rankings. This group was led by: Farmers State Bank in Humphrey, Nebraska; the Bank of Glen Ullin in North Dakota; and The Pitney Bowes Bank in Salt Lake City.

42 percent are “highly-stressed” about the economy, the same was last year, but down 16 percent from 2013

41 percent want to spend money on tech purchases or upgrades—if their revenues increase by 5 percent or more this year. (I’d argue investing in tech will help you grow revenues.)

The cloud is pretty popular right now. Of the 62 percent of business owners who use the cloud, nearly all (95 percent) say the cloud is “beneficial”, 69 percent appreciate the cloud benefits of easier access, storage and analysis of data. And, 34 percent say the cloud has helped them save money. Other wants include:

38 percent yearn for new laptops

35 percent want to reduce or eliminate their many roles and responsibilities

33 percent want to “deploy technology to take better advantage of the ‘Internet of Things’”

Almost 50 percent of American adults get “irrelevant business emails” daily, 30 percent get them weekly

48 percent want better email content

43 percent want fewer emails from businesses

30 percent of consumers say irrelevant content is the reason they flag business email as spam

The good news is 60 percent of consumers read business emails, however only 16 percent of those readers do so regularly. Promotions and discounts get women to read business emails, while men are looking for news and updates. When asked how businesses could “improve” their email marketing tactics 44 percent want you to email them less often; 24 percent asked for more informative content and 23 percent wanted more personalized offers.

5) 3 Startup Tax Breaks You’ll Want to Know About

With April 15 just around the corner, Matt Straz, the founder and CEO of Namely, an HR, payroll and benefits platform for growing businesses, says it’s time for small business owners to kick it into high gear. “Opportunities abound for startups to cut their tax bills,” Straz says. “The key is to know and understand what’s deductible for your business, and to have a payroll system you can rely on for accurate tax reporting as your business quickly grows.”

Straz says “For many, starting your own business, being your own boss, and earning a living by doing what you love is the American dream. That dream, while exciting, is a costly venture. Fortunately, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) cuts new business owners a well-deserved break when it comes to taxes.”

To ensure you claim the deductions you deserve as a new business owner, Straz offers three tax breaks you need to know about:

1. Research and experimentation expenses:The long hours and countless dollars you spent conducting investigative research before opening your business? That’s deductible, assuming it resulted in a productive business.

Surveying markets, analyzing products or the labor supply, scouting out locations for your business and any other costs related to creating or investigating a new business can potentially qualify as an investigative expense.

Keep in mind that startup costs up to $5,000 are deductible in full the first year. If your costs exceed that amount, then you can amortize (that is, gradually write off) the remaining costs over a 15-year period, beginning with the month in which your business opens. What’s more, that $5,000 limit has to be reduced dollar for dollar by the amount of startup costs that exceed $50,000. For startup costs greater than $55,000, the $5,000 deduction is no longer an option.

2. Business preparation expenses: Your business likely incurred a number of expenses before it was even “open for business.” As luck would have it, you can write off some of those expenses if your startup expenditures actually resulted in a fully operational business.

These business preparation costs generally include employee training and wages, travel costs associated with finding suppliers, distributors, and customers, advertising costs, and consultant fees. They don’t cover equipment purchases, which are considered assets that are written off through depreciation.

Using a full-service payroll system to integrate payroll with timesheets will ensure you accurately account for wages during the preparatory phase. Keeping up with time management at your growing company is crucial for saving more cash come year’s end.

3. Organizational expenses: If your business is up-and-running as a partnership or corporation before the end of your first year in business, certain organizational structure formation costs can also be deducted.

These expenses include the cost of state incorporation fees and legal fees, organizational meetings, and temporary directors’ salaries.

Small business owners who opt to form a partnership can deduct legal fees, accounting costs, and filing fees related to the development of the partnership agreement.

Moving Forward: How to Maximize Your Tax Benefits

New business owners are often stretched financially, making it even more important to maximize the tax benefits of your startup expenses. Even once those startup expenses become operating expenses (after the planning and development phase of your business), keeping good records is the key to reducing your tax liability and pocketing more of your hard-earned money.

Once your business is fully operational, reliable payroll is a must. Consider investing in an easy-to-use provider that can help with timely calculation, filing, and deposit of employment taxes. It’s worthwhile, and helps you save more come tax time. Also, keep careful track of your expenses and maintain receipts, and consider talking to a tax advisor or accountant to help you make more informed decisions concerning your business.

For more information on how different startup and small business expenses are treated by the IRS, read more at IRS.gov.

What do you think? What other tax-related tips do you have for new business owners? Share your ideas in the comments!

I’ve been talking about the importance of small business websites being mobile-friendly for quite a while now. If your site isn’t optimized for mobile, not only are you going to lose customers, but Google is (starting April 21) going to “punish” you. The New Design Group has put together a handy guide to what you need to know. Check it out.

7) Let’s Make a Deal

Do shoppers respond to coupons? Should you offer them? How can you make sure you’re doing coupons the “right” way? Valpak has the answers below.

8) 3 Steps to Transform Gossip into Gold for Your Small Business

Most of us are familiar with the downside of gossip, but Deborah Beroset, a communication expert and seminar leader for Landmark, a personal and professional growth, training and development company, reports scientists say it can be positive too—a “sort of glue that binds society.” Beroset cites one study showing more than half of our conversations are gossip-driven. But there’s a cost: In addition to the obvious impacts of wasted time and lowered productivity, gossip can drive a wedge between people, adversely affecting how others view you and sapping your happiness and productivity.

So how can you find the “hidden gold” in gossip in your small business? Beroset recommends seeing gossip as a sign that something needs to change. “It’s not a matter of gossip being bad or a moral issue, it’s the fact that it undermines workability. And without workability, you have no shot at performance,” she says.

Beroset recommends you take three steps to transform “gripe” gossip into an opportunity to improve communications with your staff:

Notice when you and others are gossiping. Engaging in gossip is a habit, which means people—including you—often do it without thinking. Entrepreneurs and small business owners set the tone for what goes on in their workplaces. Whether the topic is a vendor, a customer, someone within the company or simply someone you know in common, practice asking yourself whether your words, or those of others, are contributing something positive to the conversation or diminishing someone. Simply paying attention to what’s being said is half the battle.

Identify a complaint. When you hear an employee, business partner or one of your managers gossiping, see if you can gently steer the conversation toward whatever complaint is underneath the gossip. In small businesses, the most common complaints revolve around money, time or responsibilities. If an employee gripes that their workload is too heavy compared with that of other employees, for instance, it may be time to look at how responsibilities can be allocated more fairly and efficiently.

Take it to the right person. Look to see what request could be made that would address the situation that’s bothering you or the person gossiping, and then identify the best person to take that request to. Practice catching yourself about to say something negative to someone who can do nothing about it—and then follow up with someone who can. With regard to others, if there’s gossipy grumbling in the ranks about a vendor’s performance, for example, look to see what conversation there is to have directly with that vendor as opposed to indulging in or tolerating behind-their-back talk that makes no difference, and either have that conversation yourself or, better yet, request that the person with the complaint addresses the matter with the appropriate party.

What moves mountains in this world is the ability to make powerful requests. People are often amazed at the ease with which a simple request can resolve circumstances that previously seemed like a lost cause. If each time you overhear or learn of gossip you urge the person involved to deal with the matter directly, your efforts contribute to a workplace culture that values direct, powerful communication.

9) On The Road Again…and Again

The American Hotel & Lodging Association wants you to be aware of fraudulent third-party booking sites that “deceive consumers into thinking they are something they are not (like the branded hotel website or other reputable online travel agency) and are able to offer something they can’t (like cancellations, specific rooms and ADA accessibility).” Here are some tips from the American Hotel & Lodging Association:

Use trusted sites:Although the hotel’s name may be part of the URL, double check the website address to ensure it’s not a third-party vendor.

Book directly with the hotel either via web or phone to avoid being scammed.

To ensure you protect your information, your reservation, your points and your credit information, ask the right questions when booking:

What is the privacy policy? Make sure your personal information isn’t harvested.

What is the cancellation/trip change policy? Many third party booking sites don’t allow cancellations, changes, or refunds. ü Is the site, in any way, affiliated with the hotel? If its not, your rewards points may not be honored.

Is it a secure payment site? The URL should have a small lock and should start with https:// as opposed to just http://.

If a vendor has misrepresented itself to you or if you’ve fallen victim to a hotel booking scam, contact the FTC to alert them to the issue and file a complaint.

10) How Vulnerable Are You?

How many security mistakes do you make every day? If you’re like most of us—lots. And making even just one of them can leave your business—and yourself vulnerable. Check out this article from NextAdvisor.com warning you about common security mistakes and how to avoid making them.

11) Cool Tools, pt. 1

Xero just launched some new features this week to its accounting software. They include:

Inventory. Delivers simple inventory management allowing real-time tracking of the quantity and value of their small business inventory. Items can be easily added to an online quote or invoice, helping small businesses better manage and monitor stock. For customers with complex inventory needs, Xero seamlessly connects to a number of partners in the Add-on Marketplace.

Online Quotes. Small business owners can create online quotes and estimates easily from within Xero, on-the-go, in real-time, and on any device.

Practice Reports. Practice Reports allows accountants to add value to clients through customized reporting on their accounts with real-time data. Initially launching in New Zealand, practice reports will shortly be rolled out in Australia, followed by the U.K. and U.S. later this year.

Side-by-Side Files. Makes it easy for small businesses to enter their financial transactions. Receipts and bills can be uploaded to Xero and viewed on-screen while the transaction is being entered or completed.

Bank Feeds. Building on the existing support for bank feeds, Xero makes it easy for bank transactions to be reconciled with small business accounting. Xero now supports an additional 1,692 bank feeds, connecting to 7,000 bank feeds and over 5,000 financial institutions globally.

12) Cool Tools, pt. 2

Stitch Labs, an inventory control and multichannel selling solution, just announced a new sales forecasting feature which helps simplify operational challenges for retailers and empowers them to make smarter, data-driven business decisions.

Predicting sales is often difficult for retailers. With sales forecasting, retailers can make informed purchasing decisions through reports that help estimate future sales. Stitch’s sales forecasting reports will allow retailers to project sales for the upcoming four and 12-week periods, using order history to predict future demand. The reports will include the mean number of units to be sold in that timeframe. Armed with this information, retailers can determine which pieces of inventory will perform the best, allowing for maximum selling potential.

13) Cool Tools, pt. 3

Kabbage, a leading online provider of small business loans, has licensed its lending platform. In May, Kikka Capital will launch as one of Australia’s leading online consumer lenders, with its new small business lending service powered by technology provided by Kabbage. Kabbage will provide the onboarding, underwriting and monitoring technology platform, while Kikka Capital manages the operations, marketing, funding and loan servicing.

]]>http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20454/best-banks-tax-breaks-power-gossip/feed/06 Tips for Better Social Media Engagementhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/20347/6-tips-better-social-media-engagement/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20347/6-tips-better-social-media-engagement/#commentsFri, 27 Mar 2015 19:01:37 +0000Rieva Lesonskyhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=20347By Sarah Landrum Remember the famous line “If you build it, they will come,” from the movie “Field of Dreams?” When it comes to trying to improve social media engagement, this type of passivity is doomed to fall flat. Instead of relying on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, Google+ and other social media powerhouses to do [...]

Remember the famous line “If you build it, they will come,” from the movie “Field of Dreams?” When it comes to trying to improve social media engagement, this type of passivity is doomed to fall flat. Instead of relying on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, Google+ and other social media powerhouses to do your work for you, it’s time to roll up your sleeves and get involved. Otherwise, your following doesn’t stand much of a chance of reaching a respectable number.

So how do you increase your social media engagement? While there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer, there are definitely a few techniques that work wonders. We’ve amassed six of these actionable tips below to help you get started on your journey.

1. Use Images Whenever Possible

Humans are visual creatures, and we tend to respond to images. Instagram alone is proof enough of this fact. Images can be anything from design to professional photographs to selfies. If your Facebook page is crammed with text and barren of jpgs or gifs, you’re definitely missing out on engagement. Best of all, you don’t have to pay a professional photographer; just take some snaps with your smartphone or tablet to illustrate your content.

Example:Marketme offers a nice example of imagery that connects with its text. Not only is the picture contextual, but it also is colorful and stands out on the page.

2. Connect Your Product or Service With Appropriate Dates and Celebrations

Do you get tired of companies that tweet shout-outs about every weird holiday that comes down the pike? It’s a disastrous way to try to woo followers. With that being said, if you come across a major or minor holiday or celebration that you can honestly connect with your product or service, there’s no reason not to use it as a way to get yourself seen.

Example: Check out this President’s Day tweet from Apfelbaum, a company specializing in stamp collecting. Not only is it showcasing its merchandise, but it’s cleverly connecting it with a national holiday. Bonus: Apfelbaum has utilized our No. 1 tip by adding images.

3. Create Interesting Boards in Pinterest

Nothing is worse than a business that’s stuffy. The Internet has little time for seriousness, especially on social media. While it’s fine to use corporate lingo and imagery, it’s a good idea to mix it up with some fun, especially on photo-heavy sites like Pinterest and Instagram.

Example:Lowes is known for its clever advertising, and it definitely ratchets up the excitement with Pinterest boards like this one that make DIYers drool.

4. Put a Face on Your Company

Your business isn’t made of brick and mortar – it’s made of people. So why not show them off on your social media pages? This will make you seem much more approachable, and encourage other social media users to see your brand in a whole new light.

Example:Cvent may be a cloud based company, but its Facebook page certainly contains a human persona.

5. Hijack Trending News Items

Not sure what to write about on your social media pages, but know it’s about time to add something? Go to Google Trends and see what’s happening around the world. With a little investigating, you can surely find some item to newsjack.

Example:Oakley, the internationally-known sunglass company, hijacked the Olympics – held in Russia, hence the nesting dolls – in 2014 with this Facebook image.

6. Host a Social Media Contest

What could be more engaging and fun than a contest? Twitter actually can be a terrific medium for hosting a contest because it’s so doggone easy to track participants using hashtags. Use your imagination and try to make engagement as easy as possible.

Example:Playmobil offered a caption contest that was simple and clever, and it also got them noticed by enabling them to improve the trending of the hashtag #CaptionCompetition. The winner received an advent calendar from the company.

There’s little doubt that most organizations could do much better with their social media engagement. If yours falls into that category, start pushing your current boundaries and embrace innovative ideas. Who knows? You could end up hitting upon the winning strategy that boosts your numbers in a short amount of time.

After graduating from Penn State with degrees in Marketing and PR, Sarah Landrum moved to Harrisburg to start her career. Passionate about writing and all things social media, she recently founded a career blog for young professionals and began her own journey in the world of Internet Marketing. Follow Sarah for more advice @SarahLandrum

]]>http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20347/6-tips-better-social-media-engagement/feed/04 Tax Tips Mom-and-Pop Business Owners Must Know for April 15http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20433/4-tax-tips-mom-pop-business-owners-must-know-april-15/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20433/4-tax-tips-mom-pop-business-owners-must-know-april-15/#commentsFri, 27 Mar 2015 17:00:24 +0000Rieva Lesonskyhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=20433By Jennifer Warawa The end of March not only marks tax crunch time but also National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day. March 29 celebrates small business owners and their vital part in the economy. There are more than 28 million privately-owned small businesses in the United States. Some of these businesses are new startups, [...]

The end of March not only marks tax crunch time but also National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day. March 29 celebrates small business owners and their vital part in the economy. There are more than 28 million privately-owned small businesses in the United States. Some of these businesses are new startups, while others are handed down from one generation to the next. What these small businesses all have in common are hard-working, dedicated owners who wear many hats.

As April 15 draws near, it’s time to break out your accountant hat and brush up on all of the latest tax code changes for your 2014 taxes. Knowledge is power and, in this case, that power may be able to bolster your bank account. Learning about all of the latest tax changes could minimize your tax liability and strengthen your business’ bottom line. If you don’t have an accountant hat or feel confused by all the changing regulations, then engage with an accountant who can ensure you maximize your tax savings.

While the rest of the nation shows your business some love this Mom and Pop Business Owners Day, love yourself with these four things that you need to know before Tax Day:

Who qualifies for the Home Office Deduction?

Many small business owners keep only an office in their home. But, many don’t take the home office deduction because they perceive it to be a red flag for an IRS audit. If you are legitimately entitled to the home office deduction – which means you have a dedicated space in the home that you can prove you use solely for the business and nothing else – you should take it.

In 2013, the IRS introduced an option to use a simplified method of calculating this deduction with revisions to Form 8829. Prior to this change small business owners needed to add up the actual costs (mortgage/rent, utilities, etc.) and multiply that figure by the percentage of the home that’s dedicated to the office. Now, you can choose to take a deduction for each square foot of office space, up to a certain amount. (Note: this is currently $5 a square foot up to $1,500, but may change year over year.)

This simplified deduction method is good to use if you haven’t kept track of your home expenses or don’t have documentation to back up these expenses. That said, be careful, and don’t take this deduction if you work on your dining room table.

How has the Section 179 Deduction changed?

If you’ve bought new equipment for your business in recent years, then you should be familiar with the Section 179 Deduction, which previously had a $500,000 limit. While the IRS had reduced the deduction maximum to a significantly lower $25,000, luckily the lower limit will not be put into effect until after tax year 2014. Take advantage of this deduction while you can and be sure to claim any software, vehicles or equipment that fall within the current $500,000 limit in IRS Form 4592.

How does the Affordable Care Act affect your business?

While it was highly publicized in the media that companies with over 50 employees are most affected by the Affordable Care Act, companies with fewer than 50 employees are impacted as well. If you choose to provide health insurance to your employees, you may be eligible for higher tax credits this year. The maximum tax credit for for-profit small businesses has risen to 50 percent from 35 percent of the total of contributions to employee health insurance. For non-profit companies, this credit has risen to 35 percent from 25 percent.

While this tax credit could potentially save you significantly in tax liability, it does not come without strict guidelines. All health care insurance must be purchased through the Small Business Health Care Exchange and you must pay at least 50 percent of your employees’ health care coverage premiums. The credit is also granted on a sliding scale depending on how many employees you have and it decreases with more employees. For instance, you can only have up to 10 employees in order to get the maximum credit of 50 percent. While all of these qualifications may be frustrating to meet, if you do it is certainly worth your while.

What’s the current mileage rate?

While mileage rates have been increasing in recent years, 2014 has seen a half-cent drop, bringing the standard mileage rate to 56 cents per mile. If you plan to claim mileage deductions on your taxes, be sure you are getting the most from the deduction by keeping accurate records of your yearly vehicle usage. Does 56 cents per mile seem a little low for your specific vehicle usage? The IRS notes that you are always entitled to calculating your actual usage costs as an alternative to using the standard mileage rates to determine your deduction.

Jennifer Warawa is Vice President and General Manager Sage Accountant Solutions at Sage North America. Jennifer has a passion for entrepreneurs and small business that stems from her time as a small business owner for over a decade in her hometown of Kelowna, British Columbia. In her role at Sage, Jennifer is leading efforts to provide accountants with the technology and education they need to transform their firms and better serve their clients. Follow her at @JenniferWarawa.

]]>http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20433/4-tax-tips-mom-pop-business-owners-must-know-april-15/feed/0What Are Your Cyber-Fears? Keeping Customers Loyal and Morehttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/20439/cyber-fears-keeping-customers-loyal/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20439/cyber-fears-keeping-customers-loyal/#commentsFri, 27 Mar 2015 13:30:37 +0000Maria Valdez Haubrichhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=20439By Rieva Lesonsky The life of a business owner is a busy one. If I had my way, days would be 30 hours long—and there’d be, like the Beatles sang: “8 days a week.” But there aren’t. So to help you stay on top of important small business news, information and advice essential to running your [...]

The life of a business owner is a busy one. If I had my way, days would be 30 hours long—and there’d be, like the Beatles sang: “8 days a week.” But there aren’t. So to help you stay on top of important small business news, information and advice essential to running your business, here’s my weekly Reading List.

If you have articles you’d like to share, get them to me by end of day Wednesday every week.

]]>http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20439/cyber-fears-keeping-customers-loyal/feed/0The Four Reasons to Do Anythinghttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/20426/four-reasons-anything/
http://www.smallbizdaily.com/20426/four-reasons-anything/#commentsThu, 26 Mar 2015 19:01:59 +0000Rieva Lesonskyhttp://www.smallbizdaily.com/?p=20426By Cliff Ennico “I left corporate America a few years ago. While I wouldn’t go back in a million years, I have to confess that I’m struggling right now. In addition to running my own Internet business out of the house, I’m on the boards of three local nonprofit organizations, and I’ve been teaching classes [...]

“I left corporate America a few years ago. While I wouldn’t go back in a million years, I have to confess that I’m struggling right now.

In addition to running my own Internet business out of the house, I’m on the boards of three local nonprofit organizations, and I’ve been teaching classes as an ‘adjunct professor’ at two local colleges. I also ran (unsuccessfully) for a local public office last fall. I have two kids in high school and an elderly Mom who lives with me.

I think I’m pretty good at multitasking, but I’m running myself into the ground and am barely making a living. I need to cut back on some of this stuff, but I don’t know where to begin. Do you have any ideas?”

But here is some basic math: there are exactly 24 hours in a day, and seven days a week. Nobody has any more time, or any less. There are only so many things you can do in a day, and these get fewer and fewer as your body ages. If you are doing too much, there is only one cause: you are saying “yes” to too many people that want you to do stuff. Often, the only way to get back to a manageable schedule is to cut some things out — ruthlessly, and with the understanding you might turn some people off by doing so.

My father taught me an important lesson when I was in high school. Like this reader, I was overtaxed: I was taking seven classes a day (including three difficult Advanced Placement courses), was President of three after-school student organizations, acting in my school’s Drama Club, and had a six-day-a-week newspaper delivery route with 92 private homes. Frankly, I was killing myself. I had little time for friends, girls, and fun.

Here’s what Dad told me: “Cliff, there are only four reasons to do anything in life. Either it brings you money, helps you make connections, teaches you something, or you enjoy doing it. If something you’re doing doesn’t fit in any of those boxes, and you are not legally required to do it, why in Hell are you doing it?”

Let’s apply Dad’s thinking to our reader’s situation.

Reason # 1: The Activity Brings You Income. Your first priority as a self-employed individual (hell, as an adult human being) is to support yourself and your immediate family. If you have not achieved the financial stability to do that, getting there should be priority Numero Uno. This reader says she is “barely making a living.” Everything else should go on a back burner until that improves.

Reason # 2: The Activity Helps You Make Connections. The next priority is marketing and network building. No matter how busy I am keeping my law clients satisfied, I always take time out to give talks to local organizations, write articles for business periodicals and websites, and do anything else necessary to get my name “out there” and build my base of clients and referral sources. If I don’t do those things, the telephone stops ringing, my fan base stops growing, and the e-mail Inbox is empty (well, except for the usual junk messages).

Reason # 3: The Activity is Educational. Education and learning are not just things you do in school. They are lifetime activities; stop learning and you soon become irrelevant. Always find time to read at least 50 pages a day. Take an adult education class that will help you improve your productivity. Learn a new skill every three months that will help you with your income-generating and marketing activities.

Reason # 4: The Activity is Fun or Personally Fulfilling. “You only go around once in life; you have to go for all the gusto you can” (if that sounds vaguely familiar, you are definitely a baby boom geezer: it comes from a 1960s TV commercial for Schlitz beer). The time to enjoy life is now. You may not be able to do it when you retire. Heck, you could drop dead tomorrow. Set aside some “me” time for a few hours each week.

So what should this reader do? In my opinion, she has two clear priorities: make more money, and get her two kids through college without going bankrupt. Here are my suggestions:

Nonprofit boards are notorious “time vampires” – quit them all unless you are making amazing connections there;

Don’t run for office again, unless the publicity can help you market your business;

Get the kids to help more with Grandma (they can), and vice versa (if she can); and

Weigh the hourly income of teaching “adjunct” courses (what they pay you divided by twice the time you actually spend in class) against the additional hourly income you can realize by spending more time on your business, doing temp work, or getting a part-time job.